What You Need to Do Now to Get Your Garden Ready for Spring

Before you'll be able to plant anything, you have some spring cleaning to do to your flower beds. The first task at hand is to pull out all of the dead plant matter from last year. Your perennials appreciated the extra layer during the winter months, but once you see new growth at the bottom, you can officially pull off all the brown leaves. Be careful not to disturb anything that's starting to sprout below them. And any weeds that have started to peek their heads out need to be removed immediately. As all accomplished gardeners know, the key to weed maintenance is to weed early and often. Right now, while the soil is still damp, the job will be a little easier. Just be sure not to add the weeds to your compost pile; they could sprout even more weeds when you add the compost back into your beds.

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Did You Know?

All you need to start a compost pile is about 60 percent brown matter and 40 percent green matter. Fall leaves will easily make up the brown stuff, while grass clippings, plant matter and kitchen scraps round out the green.